Cobd tibe



March 9 1926. 1,575,955

w. R. B. WHITTIER CORD TIRE Filed No`v. a, 1919 Pares@ Marv.t9,i1926.

UNITED -S'If'ATlEIS WALTER n. nvwnrr'rmn, or cHA'r'rAHoocHEE, esonera.

Cord Tires, of which the following is a` specilicatlon.

- "serving as the outer coverl for a pneumati- TIER, a citizen ofthe'1,575,955 PATENT oFF-ICE...

conn Tran.`

" Application mea N-wmbe-faima seal No. 336,590.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I nited States offAmerica, and resident ofChattahoochee, in 'the county of Fulton and State of Georgia, haveinvented 4new and ,useful Improvements in This invention relates toIvehicle tiresof' the cord type comprising 'a shoe, usually callyextended inner tube, having in its construction .a carcass or 'body Ioftextile elements. v

As heretofore constructed such l,carcasses have been appliedaboutformers, or vwound between cord or wire annuluses establishing a bead'or edge, or otherwise applied to constitute inner reinforcing layersproviding tensilestrenvthto the shoe or cover in every direction. nthebest practice of which I am aware in the prior art the cords of whichthe carcasses are composed have been laid or twisted cords or smallropes, usually comprised of three strands 'of cotton yarn, strandshaving a left-handtwist typically being 4laid in a fright-'hand twistedrelation, or vice versa, so as to provide -a rope the fibers of, whosesurface lie roughly longitudinally where they are exposed at the surface1 of the twisted cord or rope.

-Tires having carcasses made of any such cords or ropes area markedimprovement over the prior practice of reinforci-ng tires by wovenfabrics or *by wires or by various v other expediente, tires having thevcord reinforcement uniformly Ashowing greater 'longevity andgreaterreliability under excessively hard use as compared with the oldstructures. Such tires are, however, not without' grave defects, which Ihave discovered to be attributable to the characteristics of thecordemp-loyed as an element vof the carcass and its relation to its'surroundings, Such a tire carcass, for instance,

h-asheretofore been formed by winding upon llkewire annuluses of a sizeadapted to serve as' a l core of the\bead or clencher-rib edge of thetire, byfirst covering two coaxial parallel spaced annuluses `with asheet of uni vulcanized rubber, land then winding a series of cords atan angle of 45 to the peripheral direction, first above or outside ofthe annuluses andl then-within and through the annuluses, this practice.being carried out eitherby rst sticking together a belt of WALTER R.WHrrparallel cords with rubber and then winding the belt in thedescribed path; or by Winding the cords singly in contacting runs untilthe 4entire outer and inner wrap around the bead annuluses is finished,and` then applying plastic or liquid rubber. This produces a carcassfabric, at this stage-cylindrical, having selvages of returning bights'lyingr side by'side in contact at each'edge wire, the

taken about the wire annuluses, both during making and during subsequentuse, sojthat the bends are-spread wider than the normal diameter oftherope, and reduced in thickness to the thickness of the rope yarns orstrands, and that these yarns. or strands are often flattened at thebends by the strain. Where'the carcass should be strongest, at the bead,it is thus made weakest by the separation of the -components ofthe laidor twisted cord. -Such a laid cord or rope is moreover easily separatedor penetrated by-a sharp object. `Although such a twisted orlaid cord orrope when free is adapted to stretch longitudinally and resilientlyrecover its original length on release, it loses this property whenconfined, the stretch and resilience being due to rotation of theintertwined cords comprising therope upon the longitudinal axls of therop e,thus to permit each element of the oso'l rope to approachalignment with-its length,

the resilient recovery being due to the set bent or lspiral ccndition ofeach strand tendinU to recover from straightness to its origispiralform. When. the rope 1s embedded in a plastic, as in its position in the`finished] shoe, it can not rotate, nor can its strands straighten tostretch or resume their crinkleto 'recover to the original length,

ing the attachment to the rubber, or parting internally the bres 'of thestrands.

Embedment of the cord and attachment to* its neighbors is essential tothe prevention 85 `inner-and outer layers being separated by i ofinternal friction in 'use and to maintenance of consistent and uniformtensile strength in the fabric. When, as stated,

each cord or rope tends to'rotate in re-v sponse to a force tending toextend it longitudinally, this embedment and cohesion is rapidlydestroyed, with accompanying heat tending to destroy the rubber of theportions of the'shoe affected.

When plastic or liquid rubber is applied to the twisted or laid rope,that portion of the rubber which penetrates the convoluthe interiorportion of the rope is at places able in tensile strength from place toplace left free to -move in respect to the exterior portion, and thus inuse vto subject each strand to the internal friction of fibre rubbing onfibre.

Twisted or laid ropes are-notoriously variin the same length, and as anarticle of commerce suchtire cord, as a necessity of the mode ofmanufacture, is variable in weight and diameter.

As a further necessity of the mode ot'l by more thanten per cent(preferably by manufacture, it is impracticable to supply great lengthsof rope free from joints' or splices of inferior strength and differingin diameter from the standard size. Since each tire carcass requires forhonestconsistency a continuous length free from splices, loss of longends of twisted or laid ropes, because insufficient for a whole carcass,is frequent and 1s implicit 1n the use of such ropes.

This invention provides' means in avoidance of the above diiiiculties. Aprincipal object iste provide a lcord tire in which the resilience andlife of both the cord and the rubber or other plastic body of thev tireis maintained` and increased; to provide for 'standardization of thetensile strength,

thickness, weight and durability of the cord fabric to a degreeheretofore impossible; to provide a cord tire fabric free from internalfriction and heating to a, degree here` tofore not attained, to preventlosses'of Vmaterial in manufacture and thereby to reduce the cost ofsuch tires, and to provide such tires with greatly increased resistanceto cutting and puncture.

In the accompanying drawings, in which a tire comprising one embodimentonly of the invention is shown by way of illustration vof the new genusof tires constituting the invention;

Fig. l is a side elevation of a section of tire shoe torn open todisplay' the various components ofthe fabric;

Fig. 2 is a cross section on a radial plane -of the shoe shown in Fig.l;`

Va suitable separator sheet of igu3-is`a diagram illustrating a pre#.ferrcd arrangement of cords; 1

Fig. 4 is a -section of a typical cord; and

sired Way to obtain the desired rein oicement of the abrio, forinstance, as shown in Fig. 3, by winding under :and over diagonally, asat 45- to the parallel spaced endless bead annuluses 3 and 4 a sin lecord 10, the annuluses having been 5 before the winding begins. Thewinding is continued until the entire inner and outer surface of thecylinderdened bythe spaced annulusesis covered withV cords tacting, orsubstantially contacting, in each diagonal layer. M

Inorder to avoid the difficulties mentioned above, a cordl elementtypified by a cord 10 is employed, this cord preferably having nearlyuniform breaking strength, A with a permitted variation of about fiveper cent provi ed with plastic .rubber .80

from standard (which may be as high as 250 pounds), having. asubstantially uniform maximum elongation under given tensile strain,having a diameter nowhere varying not more than seven per cent) from.the

normal diameter, and having throughout vthe.

tire no splice or joint involving at any one place in thecordmore than-tcn per cent of its component strands.` j

`These4 qualities are, provided by a cord 10, as illustrated in Fi @and5, of the solidbraided type, whi mayl consist of a plurality' of.preferably-like longitudinal.

strands 11, joined together in va, braiding relation familiar tomakers-of solid'braided.

cordage; s uch for instance as will result l strands l1 in four groupsby'carriers actuated to pass one strand (active) under twoY separatedsplices having no substantial effect upon or elasticity of the finishedcord.

Any desired textile material nay be einployed for the strands 11, but asuitable and preferred material for the strands is a twisted o-runtwisted bundle ofthe desired longitudinal tensile strength, diameterfrom -the continuous braiding of twelve number of even. and' well-'spuncotton yarns made of a good quality of combed or carded cotton. In' the.instance shownand precoating with a liquid or lsemi-liquid thecylindrical ferred for passenger cars of ordinary sizes, braided cord isof about 3/16 inch diameter, and the thirteen strands comprising it .areeach parallel bundles of twelve -o'r more yarns, about 20s',

of the sort mentioned. -f j A consequence of the cord structurementioned is a slightly-roughened nearly cylindrical exterior built upof .longitudinally extending exposed crossings 13, Fig. '5, -of eachstrand 1n succession (except the core strand) the entire body of thecord being filled with theI inner runs of the strands quired qualities;

` gation,

- straln. elongation,

-cord-fabric mentioned, it is treated at any.

sense' of the cord itself.

'braided characteristic passing tothe interior under "the other strands.Such braided cordage has the reupon Alongitudinal stress there is notendency of the cord to rotate; in such cordage each element of thecomplex of longitudinal threads formin under substantially equal stra-1nand' bears its full part without having to shift posi- 'tion in the cordin determining the maxi- `such a cord is as vgreat as the expectedworkinfr elasticity of the tire fabric as a whole.

-efore the cord 10 is wound` on the an-.

nuluses 3, 4, or A otherwise built up into the desired or customary waadapted to its situation; a reco-mmende treatment is to subject the cordtoimpregnationfor mere vulcanizabley rubber solution of any of the wellknown compositions employed for treatment of tire elements.

As compared with the rope cord heretofore used the cord itself takes uparelatively small amount of ilnpregnating or :coating agent, but this isnot because there 1s an inferior penetration of the impregnating agentbut because the cylinder defined by the cord is more thoroughly occupiedwith useful fibre than in the case of a twisted or lai'd cordage. v Thestructure above mentioned, which may be varied if desired so long as thesoli'd is retained, is thus susceptible of its maximum elongation andelastioreturn without separating the fibres among-themselves, vrubbingone-strand over the other, or twisting one strand in respect to theother, elongation merely causing each strand to straighten/bycompression ofthe .underlying strands in a plane lying substantiallylongitudinally and diametrically of and within the cord. Althoughpenethe cord is` trated by rubber subsequently vulcanized, elongationand elastic recovery. are not greatly affected bythe rubber. rThe fibresof the fabric are, however, thereby waterproofed and rendered vmorecohesive; the. breakingstrain of the treated cord is greater than thebreaking strain of an untreated cord. Durability' is also increased.

The annuluses 3 and 4 having been wound full, and the wound end of thecord fastened ofli inl any usual manner, ason the inner surface of thecarcass, -the tire is finished by any usual method. VFor instance, the

fabric is stretched on its peripheral median line into the horseshoecross sectionI indicated 1n Fig. 2, with the aid of a suitable former orformers, before or after the. inner surface is covered with a rubber orother suitable plastic composition 20 to the desired depth,- and 'beforeor after the application to its outer surface of rubber doughfoform theside walls 15; and the tireI at any stagel 'of its partly formedcondition may be provided with a tread 17 reinforced with somesuitablefabric 16, such asnon-skid or other tread 17 molded upon thetire. The outer surfaces of the beads may as usual be-covered withfabric reinforces 18 and 19, and

the tire as a whole subjected to any usual or desired vulcanizing orcuring treatment. The valuable functions mentioned are obtained when thecor'd 10 is a solid braided cord of the above described type, but will.

be understood that the invention .is independent of the particularstructureof lthe cord 10 so long as this cord is capable of performingthe new scribed, and that the cord 10 may be of any functions in the waydestructure adapted'to be put under tensile strain without tendency torotate in or break away from its seat; or destructivelyvto rub onestrand upon arate into its component strands; or to flatten,l separateor lose its .round ycharacter when subjected to strain at a bend about aanother strand, or to sephard abutment, as at oneof the bead-wires orcords 3, t; 'or to resist separation by penetration of a 'sharp pointedobject. Other patterns of solid braids, .circular woven, knit, orwrapped cords and ropes known to cord and rope makers have `some -ofthese characteristics, and 'may' be employed within the invention in thenew relation and for the pur oses the conditions explained above.

I claim: 1. A tire having textile cordage characterized by a structurepreventing rotative surface motion of the cordage, and other therein-alayer of round cord under longitudinal strain tending to breakI it awayfrom ltachments, and a covering mass 1n plastic attachmentto the cordagela yer.

' 2. A tire having therein a layer of round adhesions or plasticatmentioned dwhen the structure respon s toflgo textilecordagecharacterized by an internal under lo layer. A2. -A

structure preventing rotation 'of-the cord 'tudinal tension, and a covesubst-.ance` 1n adhesive attachment to the co are having therein a layerof stud braided cordage in adhesive attachment to the substance of thetire.

4. A trehaving therein a layer of substantially cylindrical solidbraided cordage in adhesive attachment to the substance of the tire.: fl

5. A tire having a carcass built up of layers'ofparallel runs of roundsolid braided cordage attached together by l'plastic bedment. j

f 6. A tire having a carcass built up of laers of parallel runs, lyingin diiferent rections in adjacent layers, of solid braided cords, the'layers and the cords being atl tached together by embedment in anelastic 'each having a plurality of strands fastened together by otherstrands, whereby to resist separation of said cords into their componentstrandsl at the bights about. said an nulus.

8. A tire i .braided textile cords reversed in direction to I- j formbights about an included annulus, the cords each having a plurality `ofstrands ininterlocked together to form a solid cylindrical-body bmutual' interengagement of said strands, w ereby said cords areinseparable l into their component strands at 'the bights v about said.annulus, or by puncture.

9.A In a tire casing of the type comprising twoannular bead membersandcontinuous strands'. of cord wound. spirally about the g same, thatimprovement which consists in the employment of solid braided cord asthe .material of which the cords vare constituted.

10. In a tire casin of the type comprising two: annular bea members andcontinul ous strands of cord iwcund having a carcass -built uplo'f.

i the same, that improvement sghich consists in the vempl ment, as thecord elementv 5'0 thereof, of so id .braidedcord,A the stitches 'ofwhich are .braided ltogether to, as v hinges under` iexing strains.

11. A tire 'casing avin therein a textile inclusion built up ofsolid-braided cordage in adhesive contact withI and embedded 1n theresilient substance of the tire casin whereby the tire casing, includingthe cor age element, is adapted to resilient elongation4 without causingthe cordage element to tend to rotate in respect to its embedment.

12. A tire casing having therein a textile inclusion built up .ofadjacent strands of round solid-braided cordage in adhesive contact withand embedded in resilient vulcanized rubber constitutin 4the substanceof the tire casing, the cor age element being adapted to stretchlongitudinally without rotation in respect to its rubberl embedment.V

13. A tire casing having therein a textile Vinclusion-built up of'lagers of'ad'acent parallel strands, the stran one ayer lyingcrosswiseof another layer, said strands being ofl round solid-braidedcorda e in ad-. hesive 'contact with and embedde in a re silient mass ofrubber constituting the substance of the tire casin said strandsindividually being adap to be stretchedto their tensile imit'wit-houtrotation in respect to their embedment.

14. A shoe for pneumatic tires in which" is incolrt'lorated a fabricbraid laced back and fo transversely of the shoe in a biasdirectionvvith reference to thecircumference of. the shoe. l -4 v15.A.shoe for pneumatic tires in which is incorporated a fabric braid lacedback and forth transversely of the shoe to form al Elurality oflies,'sa1d.lacing being on the las with re eren to the circumferenceof`90 vthe shoe.

lSigned by me at IBoston, Massachusetts., this -fth day of November1919.

l-WALTER n. B. tvHITTIER.

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